Basic Instinct

She sets up an easel and primed canvas, takes out brushes and paints to capture light and shadow of Fort Tryon Park or the bike path that opens up around Dyckman Street.

She paints quickly in the style of en plein air – French for open (in full) air.

“It’s the quality of painting light and how it hits the objects,” she said. “It’s different than working in a studio.”

The studio is a controlled environment. Artists have the luxury taking their time to analyze a painting and moving lights around. Some find working in the studio a more intellectual process. Working outside, instead, requires constantly adapting to how the light is always changing. Work happens quickly.

Many Bridges.

“You can’t really think too much about it,” said Drescher. “You just capture the sensations of what you’re seeing and what you’re feeling.”

A dozen of Drescher’s paintings are currently on display at the Bowery Gallery in Chelsea.

At first glance, her palate may seem limited, but a closer look reveals a depth of shadows.

She never uses a simple black color. Instead, they’re composed of deep reds or verdant greens.

The painting Red Roof depicts the top of La Marina.

Drescher has lived in Washington Heights for several years and designs sweaters. The deep rose and dreamy lavenders appearing in her paintings are very different than the ones used in fashion.

She used to drive upstate to paint. But after giving up her car, she found local places to paint.

Bridge Early Morning.

Red Roof, on display at the Bowery, is the top of La Marina. “You arrive at a painting place when that scene resonates with you,” she said. “In your inner eye, you already know this will be a painting.”

Painting en plein air is a problem-solving process. Working against time—because the light constantly changes—she quickly captures the essence of a scene on canvas. While light and shadows shift, she nails down the first impression of a scene and conveys why she fell in love with the landscape to begin with.

ImagiNATIONS by Andrea Arroyo│ ImagiNACIONES por Andrea Arroyo

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